Mike and Bruce as "The Beach Boys" just don't have the same standing in the business as Brian and/or The Beach Boys including Brian.

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a diseased bunch of mo'fos if there ever was one… their beauty is so awesome that listening to them at their best is like being in some vast dream cathedral decorated with a thousand gleaming American pop culture icons.

To sum it up, they blew it, they blew it consistently, they continue to blow it, it is tragic and this pathological problem caused The Beach Boys' greatest music to be so underrated by the general public.

Looks like it was a pretty amazing setlist! Aside from the selections from Mike's album, I've never heard "All I Wanna Do" or "Till I Die" performed by any number of Beach Boys live on stage! Cool stuff!

Mike sang ‘ Summertime Blues’. Christian sang ‘Sailor ‘ . He also did ‘’Caroline No ‘ and ‘God Only Knows’. They did NOT do All I wanna do’ though. Fantastic performance all round. Massively impressed by the new guy on bass and what he brought to the sound in general. First half was as good as I have seen either of the bands over the last five years. Second half I felt wasn’t helped by the Mike solo stuff and’ Kokomo’ which seemed to slow everything down. That said the version of ‘ Till I Die ‘ was reverential in detail and quality. Having greater numbers on stage has paid considerable dividends for Mike .

I thought Mike sounded very strong most of the time, only a little shaky on Kiss Me Baby.

Highlights for me were It’s Ok, Hearts (though I wish they’d sing it a little slower) and finally seeing Christian Love who does have a good voice along with the family connection which does add extra weight for me. Also really pleased they did Til I Die because when they did it in May 2015 some fuckwits ruined it for me talking, laughing and pouring champagne for themselves during the whole thing

I thought the second set was stronger than the first, might just be me but first set didn’t feel fully tight.

I love Brian E on most songs but dare I say it Jeff’s absence wasn’t entirely unnoticed.

There was a political moment where Mike implied an American politician (AOC?) wanted to ban air travel which then led on to a Brexit comment that I didn’t quite understand but Bruce certainly enjoyed it

Blows my mind really that with all that history Mike and Bruce are still out there doing it and sounding pretty pretty good.

To compare to my most recent Brian gig which was near the end of last year in Toronto, the lows were obviously lower then (namely the Pet Sounds portion) however the first part of that gig remains hard to beat for me in terms of recent live shows...that said last night didn’t really have any lows to speak of.

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"..be cautious, don't get your hopes up, look over your shoulder because heartbreak and darkness are always ready to pounce"

4/5 star review in the Telegraph. Seemingly it lost a star for being too long... just skip all that boring stuff and get to Barbara Ann

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The one problem was that the concert was too long. They could have lopped off 18 songs, ditched the interval and played 30 all-out bangers instead (that’s still five more songs than The Eagles currently play live, and 10 more than The Rolling Stones).

Think the HCTS arrangment is kinda interesting but doesn't seem to be in the right key for Mike to sing it. Christian Love sounds good on SOS. John Coswill does a good job on Cottonfields...I never liked him on Wild Honey.

Must be strange for Mike's band to play a great venue like that to what looks like a full house and then go back to playing state fairs and casinos.

I don't dig the cover at all, and not the specific performance in the video but just overall. Here Comes The Sun, besides being one of the most beloved songs of the past 50 years that has touched and affected millions upon millions of listeners including myself, is one of the most uplifting and positive songs ever recorded...and one of the best records ever made. Just as the intro to California Girls uses majestic musicality and arrangement to depict a sunrise through music, and something like the Rascals' "It's A Beautiful Morning" literally sounds like someone walking out their door to start a beautiful day and enjoy the moment, Here Comes The Sun *sounds and feels* exactly like what George is singing about, through the sound and arrangement.

Now, with this cover, it's become an adult contemporary near-dirge-like ballad with an easy listening pseudo-Latin-bossa drum groove, and the glory and happiness and excitement of the original song is lost. For whatever reason, this version sounds depressing, and how that can happen to one of the most joyous songs in modern times is a mystery to me. Mike sounds like he's delivering a sad eulogy rather than celebrating a beautiful day to come, and it's a baffling choice.

I also think it's ironic that it sounds like an outtake from Brian's "Imagination" album, when the AC tendencies were at their worst.

And it's odd how they did both this AND Pisces Brothers in the same show. One dirge-like Harrison tribute is enough, perhaps? Or too much.

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"All of us have the privilege of making music that helps and heals - to make music that makes people happier, stronger, and kinder. Don't forget: Music is God's voice." - Brian Wilson

4/5 star review in the Telegraph. Seemingly it lost a star for being too long... just skip all that boring stuff and get to Barbara Ann

Quote

The one problem was that the concert was too long. They could have lopped off 18 songs, ditched the interval and played 30 all-out bangers instead (that’s still five more songs than The Eagles currently play live, and 10 more than The Rolling Stones).

I think this is merely mediocre. Although I just played it for my coworker who said it was "brutal". IMO Mike's lead vocal is certainly unfortunately pretty lifeless and dispassionate. I'll at least give credit that the M&B band is trying to do something different and a bit interesting musically between the verses.

If you're gonna do a cover song, might as well try to do something "new" and bring some interesting melodies to it, and Mike's band has at least done that.

Now if we want to talk Mike Love-sung Beatles covers that are "truly awful", this "Imagine" cover from 1983 (with a corporate-sponsored Mike proudly wearing a Radio Shack hat while singing a song that's supposed to be an anti-corporate anthem) is indeed truly awful on pretty much every level:

I sang along with this abomination all the while holding my nose. Can you imagine the ego of this stool sample absolutely destroying Lennon's classic? How this clown can go on stage and do the things he does like this are truly unfathomable. He does not care because he is unbridled and will do anything to not only destroy the legacy but to make people believe he's even worthy to do a take on a great song when everyone knows he can't hold the proverbial candle to Lennon, Brian Wilson or anyone else that matters. He should been escorted off the stage or have been booed until he left the stage.

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myKe luHv, the most hated, embarrassing clown the world of music has ever witnessed.

I sang along with this abomination all the while holding my nose. Can you imagine the ego of this stool sample absolutely destroying Lennon's classic? How this clown can go on stage and do the things he does like this are truly unfathomable. He does not care because he is unbridled and will do anything to not only destroy the legacy but to make people believe he's even worthy to do a take on a great song when everyone knows he can't hold the proverbial candle to Lennon, Brian Wilson or anyone else that matters. He should been escorted off the stage or have been booed until he left the stage.

I sang along with this abomination all the while holding my nose. Can you imagine the ego of this stool sample absolutely destroying Lennon's classic? How this clown can go on stage and do the things he does like this are truly unfathomable. He does not care because he is unbridled and will do anything to not only destroy the legacy but to make people believe he's even worthy to do a take on a great song when everyone knows he can't hold the proverbial candle to Lennon, Brian Wilson or anyone else that matters. He should been escorted off the stage or have been booed until he left the stage.

George Harrison is the composer of "Here Comes The Sun".

Uh, I was referencing Mike Love's horrible rendition of "Imagine", but thanks anyway.

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myKe luHv, the most hated, embarrassing clown the world of music has ever witnessed.

Probably one of the most iconic songs ever written. Certainly Harrison's best right up there with something. Such an upbeat wonderful tune and love absolutely destroys it. This guy should be ushered off the stage just for performing this song in such a poor manner. Sacrilege

Probably one of the most iconic songs ever written. Certainly Harrison's best right up there with something. Such an upbeat wonderful tune and love absolutely destroys it. This guy should be ushered off the stage just for performing this song in such a poor manner. Sacrilege

To be fair, he gave the disclaimer at the beginning that every note of that arrangement was Totten's.